A&P Looking to purchase my first dSLR

Im looking at either the Nikon D40 or D50. Unless someone has other suggestions? What are the key differences between the 2? Also, what are some good lenses to get with it? Ive had 3 "point and shoot" cameras and I just wanna step up and get something better.

i thought the d40 was replacing the d50? and i am gunna be entry level. the only cameras ive used are simple point and shoot cameras. The most advanced being a Sony Cybershot. Whats so much more special about the 50?

i thought the d40 was replacing the d50? and i am gunna be entry level. the only cameras ive used are simple point and shoot cameras. The most advanced being a Sony Cybershot. Whats so much more special about the 50?

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I just went through a very similar decision here. I had the Canon Rebel XT and XTi on one side, and the Nikon D40 and D50 on the other. After reading a ton of reviews online, as well as asking a ton of questions on the OT:AP forums, I eventually eliminated the Rebel XT and XTi from contention. It was a shame, because with point and shoots I have always been partial to Canon cameras, and I tried as hard as I could to like the XTi, but just couldn't. Biggest problem for me was the fact that it is so uncomfortable to hold in my hand. At first I tried to convince myself that it wasn't THAT uncomfortable to hold, and I would get used to it...but then I played around with it for about only 10 minutes continuously, and it made my hand cramp up. Not to mention, it has problems with underexposure.

So I was back to being between the D40 and D50, like you are. One reason why I chose the D50 over the D40 was, once again, because the D50 feels like it perfectly fits my hand, and was very comfortable to hold. Also, the D40 can only use lenses where the autofocus motor is built into the lens, which means you cant use a lot of great nikon lenses, like the 50mm f/1.8. In addition, most user reviews of the D50 on big sites like dpreview.com are very positive, and everybody I could find who had owned/used one seemed to love it. I hope this helps.

I paid $580 for my D50 w/ the 18-55mm kit lens on bhphotovideo.com , but oddly, I walked into a local Ritz Camera Store near my house this weekend, and they had the same thing (D50 w/ 18-55 kit lens) for only $550, I was pretty surprised.